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Shane Watson is one of the few overseas players who has been playing in IPL since the start of the inaugural season in 2008. He started off his IPL career with Rajasthan Royals and was instrumental in them winning the first edition of IPL. In fact, Watson’s performance in the first edition of IPL aided him in enhancing his position as the No 1 all-rounder in the Australian side.
From 2008 to 2016, Rajasthan Royals never let go Shane Watson. However, when RR was suspended in 2016, Shane Watson was picked up by Royal Challengers for whom he played for 2 years in 2016 and 2017. In the 2018 auction, Shane Watson was signed by Chennai Super Kings.
In IPL history, Shane Watson has so far scored 3177 runs at an average of 32 and strike rate of 141 in 117 matches. He has also taken 92 wickets at an economy of 7.93. The Australian all-rounder has played the dual role of opening the batting and bowling in IPL to perfection.
In this article, let us analyse Shane Watson’s 3 best knocks in IPL history.
#3. Watson’s 89 not out for Rajasthan Royals against Mumbai Indians in 2011
In this match, Watson first made his presence felt by claiming 3 wickets including the wickets of Rohit Sharma and Ambati Rayadu. Because of Watson’s effort of 3 for 19 in 4 overs, Mumbai Indians couldn't get going in their innings. They finished with 133 in 20 overs though they had lost only 5 wickets.
RR started their chase with Shane Watson opening with Rahul Dravid. Watson warmed up with a four off the first ball of the innings bowled by Munaf Patel. To exploit Watson’s supposed weakness against spin, Harbhajan was brought in from the other end. Watson hoisted him for two sixes in his first over. Mumbai Indian’s star bowler Lasith Malinga was greeted with two fours in his first over.
In Malinga's next over, Watson pulled his short balls to mid wicket for two fours and one six. After neutralising the Malinga threat, Watson turned his attention to Dhawal Kulkarni and thumped him for a four and six. He reached his fifty off 30 balls with 6 fours and 3 sixes.
After completing his fifty, Watson went after Harbhajan blasting him for 3 consecutive fours. Chasing 134 for a win, RR reached 97 in the first 10 overs. Kieron Pollard leaked 19 runs in his 2 overs. Finally, when the target was reached in the 14th over, Watson was unbeaten on 89 off 47 balls with 9 fours and 6 sixes while Dravid remained not out on 43.
This was Shane Watson’s first 50 in the IPL 2011 season. While Rajasthan Royals failed to qualify for the play-off stages in that season, Mumbi Indians were knocked out by Royal Challengers in Qualifier 2.
#2 Watson’s 70 for RR against CSK in IPL 2013
This match was played at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium at Jaipur. RR won the toss and put CSK into bat. After a terrific opening partnership of 83 between Mike Hussey and Murali Vijay, CSK reached a mere 141 runs after 20 overs.
With Rahul Dravid, Shane Watson, Brad Hodge, Ajinkya Rahane, Sanju Samson and Brad Hodge in their ranks for RR, the stage was set for an easy RR win. However, RR was in for a shock when they were reduced to 45 for 4 in the 10th over of the innings.
Rahane, James Franklin, Sanju Samson and Rahul Dravid were all back in the pavilion. Rajasthan Royal’s only hope rested on the shoulders of Shane Watson. Watson came in at No 5 and started off his innings with a four off Mohit Sharma and a six off Dwayne Bravo. He was on 13 when Dravid got out.
Stuart Binny joined Watson with the target nearly 100 runs away with 10 overs to go. The 11th over bowled by R. Ashwin proved to be the turning point of the match as Watson helped himself to a couple of sixes. That over went for 23 runs which brought down the required run rate from 9.3 to 7.77.
Binny was aggressive at the other end creaming 2 fours off Chris Morris. Meanwhile, Watson went on a six-hitting spree as his next three scoring shots were all sixes. Bravo was plundered for 22 runs in one over. Watson reached his 50 off 25 balls.
Shane celebrated his 50 by nailing Chris Morris for 3 fours. Finally, Watson was yorked by Bravo for 70 off 34 balls with 6 fours and 6 sixes at a strike rate of 206. Though Watson has scored 4 hundreds in IPL, his knock of 70 against CSK in 2013 was better than his hundreds since it came when his team was wobbling at 39 for 4. Watson saved the day for RR against CSK.
In IPL 2013, both RR and CSK were knocked over by Mumbai Indians. While RR’s campaign came to an end in the second qualifier, CSK lost in the final to MI.
#1. Watson’s 117 not out for CSK against SRH in IPL final 2018
When Shane Watson was bought by CSK in the IPL auction 2018, it caused a lot of eyebrows to raise. Everyone, except the CSK think tank, thought he was an ageing cricketer struggling to remain fit and past his best. But CSK was spot on with their assessment.
Even before reaching the finals, Watson had scored 438 runs for CSK and had taken 6 wickets. With the countless bowling options at his disposal, the CSK captain M.S.Dhoni under bowled Watson for the entire season and kept him fit for batting.
In the final of IPL 2018, CSK asked SRH to bat first. SRH put up a decent score of 178 on the board which one thought was formidable in a final where the pressure of chasing would be enormous. SHR had a potent bowling attack with the presence of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Sandeep Sharma, Siddarth Kaul, Rashid Khan and Shakib Al Hasan. Besides, in the previous 10 editions of IPL, only on 3 occasions, a team chasing in the final had won. For CSK, the task was cut out.
CSK opened with Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis. Bhuvi started the proceedings for SRH. Watson was beaten off the very first ball and very nearly edged it behind. He could n’t put bat to ball in the entire over. He was once again dangerously beaten off the last ball of the over as Bhuvi started off with a maiden.
CSK and Watson could not score a single run off Bhuvi’s first 10 balls. Watson survived a confident LBW shout against Sandeep Sharma in the fourth over. He was stuck on 0 off 10 balls. He was a strokeless wonder waiting to be dismissed. There were only 3 scoring shots in the first 3 overs of the CSK innings which produced only 10 runs.
After watching Watson scratching around for 10 deliveries, the CSK fans thought it was not his day and the team would have been better off had the umpire upheld the LBW appeal against him. They never knew what was coming.
Finally, off the 11th ball he faced, Watson scored his first run with a straight-driven four off Sandeep Sharma. However, at the other end Du Plessis, CSK’s hero in Qualifier 1, succumbed to the pressure created by Watson’s inaction.
The SRH captain Kane Williamson opted to give Bhuvi his third over which created more anxious moments for Watson. Watson was on 8 off 16 balls when he decided to go hell for leather.
He started off with his favourite mid-wicket pull which vanished into the crowd. In the next over, Siddarth Kaul was flicked over square leg as the 6th and 7th over of the innings produced 15 and 16 runs respectively.
Sensing Watson’s murderous mood, Williamson brought on his main strike bowler Rashid Khan as early as in the 7th over itself. Watson cleverly played out that over and the next over from Rashid as he reached 28 off 25 balls. He targeted the other bowlers Kaul and Shakib Al Hasan as he reached his 50 off 33 balls.
CSK nearly needed 100 off the last 10 overs with Watson and Raina at the wicket. Sandeep Sharma came back spell saw Watson spanking 2 fours and 3 consecutive sixes as 27 runs were conceded in that over.
Even the dismissal of Raina did not stop Watson from hammering Carlos Brathwaite for a four and six in the same over that Raina got out. When Rayadu joined Watson, the outcome was a foregone conclusion and the only interest left in the match was whether Watson could score a hundred in the finals. By the time Bhuvi and Rashid Khan were brought back as a last-ditch effort, it was game over for SRH.
Watson duly reached his 100 off 51 balls. He finished with 117 not out off 57 balls with 11 fours and 8 sixes with an incredible strike rate of 205. From 28 off 25 balls, he scored his next 89 runs off 32 balls at an unbelievable strike rate of 278.
Due to Watson’s remarkable innings, CSK won the title for the third time. Shane Watson has played the best innings ever played in an IPL final.
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